1. Graft andCorruption Prepared By: Karen A. Aquino

2. Section 1. Statement of policy. It is the policy of thePhilippine Government,in line with the principle that apublic office is a public trust, torepress certain acts ofpublic officers and privatepersons alike which constitutegraft or corrupt practices orwhich may lead thereto.

3. Section 2. Definition of terms. As used in this Act, the term (a) "Government" includes the national government,the local governments, the government-owned andgovernment-controlled corporations, and all otherinstrumentalities or agencies of the Republic of thePhilippines and their branches.(b) "Public officer" includes elective and appointiveofficials and employees, permanent or temporary,whether in the classified or unclassified or exemptservice receiving compensation, even nominal, fromthe government as defined in the precedingsubparagraph.

4. c) "Receiving any gift" includes the act ofaccepting directly or indirectly a gift from aperson other than a member of the publicofficers immediate family, in behalf of himself orof any member of his family or relative within thefourth civil degree, either by consanguinity oraffinity, even on the occasion of a familycelebration or national festivity like Christmas, ifthe value of the gift is under the circumstancesmanifestly excessive.(d) "Person" includes natural and juridicalpersons unless the context indicatesotherwise.

5. Section 3. Corrupt practices of public officers. In addition to acts or omissions of public officers alreadypenalized by existing law, the following shall constitute corruptpractices of any public officer and are hereby declared to beunlawful:(a) Persuading, inducing or influencing another public officer toperform an act constituting a violation of rules and regulationsduly promulgated by competent authority or an offense inconnection with the official duties of the latter, or allowing himselfto be persuaded, induced, or influenced to commit such violationor offense.(b) Directly or indirectly requesting or receiving any gift, present,share, percentage, or benefit, for himself or for any other person,in connection with any contract or transaction between theGovernment and any other party, wherein the public officer in hisofficial capacity has to intervene under the law.

6. (c) Directly or indirectly requesting or receiving anygift, present or other pecuniary or material benefit,for himself or for another, from any person for whomthe public officer, in any manner or capacity, hassecured or obtained, or will secure or obtain, anyGovernment permit or license, in consideration forthe help given or to be given, without prejudice toSection thirteen of this Act.(d) Accepting or having any member of his familyaccept employment in a private enterprise which haspending official business with him during thependency thereof or within one year after itstermination.

7. e) Causing any undue injury to anyparty, including the Government, orgiving any private party anyunwarranted benefits, advantage orpreference in the discharge of hisofficial administrative or judicialfunctions through manifest partiality,evident bad faith or grossinexcusable negligence. Thisprovision shall apply to officers andemployees of offices or governmentcorporations charged with the grantof licenses or permits or otherconcessions.

8. f) Neglecting or refusing, after due demand orrequest, without sufficient justification, to act withina reasonable time on any matter pending beforehim for the purpose of obtaining, directly orindirectly, from any person interested in the mattersome pecuniary or material benefit oradvantage, or for the purpose of favoring his owninterest or giving undue advantage in favor of ordiscriminating against any other interested party.(g) Entering, on behalf of the Government, into anycontract or transaction manifestly and grosslydisadvantageous to the same, whether or not thepublic officer profited or will profit thereby.

9. (h) Directly or indirectly having financial or pecuniary interestin any business, contract or transaction in connection withwhich he intervenes or takes part in his official capacity, or inwhich he is prohibited by the Constitution or by any law fromhaving any interest.(i) Directly or indirectly becoming interested material interestin any transaction or act requiring the approval of a board,panel or group of which he is a member, and which exercisesdiscretion in such approval, even if he votes against the sameor does not participate in the action of the board, committee,panel or group.Interest for personal gain shall be presumed against thosepublic officers responsible for the approval of manifestlyunlawful, inequitable, or irregular transaction or acts by theboard, panel or group to which they belong.

10. j) Knowingly approving or granting any license, permit, privilege orbenefit in favor of any person not qualified for or not legally entitledto such license, permit, privilege or advantage, or of a mererepresentative or dummy of one who is not so qualified or entitled.(k) Divulging valuable information of a confidential character,acquired by his office or by him on account of his official position tounauthorized persons, or releasing such information in advance ofits authorized release date. The person giving the gift, present, share, percentage or benefitreferred to in subparagraphs (b) and (c); or offering or giving to thepublic officer the employment mentioned in subparagraph (d); or urging the divulging or untimely release of the confidentialinformation referred to in subparagraph (k) of this section shall,together with the offending public officer, be punished under Sectionnine of this Act and shall be permanently or temporarily disqualifiedin the discretion of the Court, from transacting business in any formwith the Government.

11. Section 4. Prohibition on private individuals.a) It shall be unlawful for any person having family or closepersonal relation with any public official to capitalize or exploitor take advantage of such family or close personal relation bydirectly or indirectly requesting or receiving any present, gift ormaterial or pecuniary advantage from any other person havingsome business, transaction, application, request or contract withthe government, in which such public official has to intervene.Family relation shall include the spouse or relatives byconsanguinity or affinity in the third civil degree. The word "closepersonal relation" shall include close personal friendship, socialand fraternal connections, and professional employment allgiving rise to intimacy which assures free access to such publicofficer.(b) It shall be unlawful for any person knowingly to induce orcause any public official to commit any of the offenses definedin Section 3 hereof.

12. Section 5. Prohibition on certain relatives. It shall be unlawful for the spouse or for any relative, by consanguinityor affinity, within the third civil degree, of the President of thePhilippines, the Vice-President of the Philippines, the President of theSenate, or the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to intervene,directly or indirectly, in any business, transaction, contract or applicationwith the Government: Provided, That this section shall not apply to anyperson who, prior to the assumption of office of any of the aboveofficials to whom he is related, has been already dealing with theGovernment along the same line of business, nor to any transaction,contract or application already existing or pending at the time of suchassumption of public office, nor to any application filed by him theapproval of which is not discretionary on the part of the official orofficials concerned but depends upon compliance with requisitesprovided by law, or rules or regulations issued pursuant to law, nor toany act lawfully performed in an official capacity or in the exercise of aprofession.

13. Section 6. Prohibition on Members of Congress. It shall be unlawful hereafter for any Member of theCongress during the term for which he has been elected, toacquire or receive any personal pecuniary interest in anyspecific business enterprise which will be directly andparticularly favored or benefited by any law or resolutionauthored by him previously approved or adopted by theCongress during the same term.The provision of this section shall apply to any other publicofficer who recommended the initiation in Congress of theenactment or adoption of any law or resolution, and acquiresor receives any such interest during his incumbency. It shall likewise be unlawful for such member of Congress orother public officer, who, having such interest prior to theapproval of such law or resolution authored or recommendedby him, continues for thirty days after such approval to retainsuch interest

14. Section 7. Statement of assets and liabilities. Every public officer, within thirty days after assuming office, thereafter, on or before the fifteenth day of April following the close of every calendar year, as well as upon the expiration of his term of office, or upon his resignation or separation from office, shall prepare and file with the office of the corresponding Department Head, or in the case of a Head of department or Chief of an independent office, with the Office of the President, a true, detailed sworn statement of assets and liabilities, including a statement of the amounts and sources of his income, the amounts of his personal and family expenses and the amount of income taxes paid for the next preceding calendar year: Provided, That public officers assuming office less than two months before the end of the calendar year, may file their first statement on or before the fifteenth day of April following the close of the said calendar year.

15. Section 8. Dismissal due to unexplained wealth. If in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered One thousand three hundred seventy-nine, a public official has been found to have acquired during his incumbency, whether in his name or in the name of other persons, an amount of property and/or money manifestly out of proportion to his salary and to his other lawful income, that fact shall be a ground for dismissal or removal. Properties in the name of the spouse and dependents of such public official may be taken into consideration, when their acquisition through legitimate means cannot be satisfactorily shown. Bank deposits in the name of or manifestly excessive expenditures incurred by the public official, his spouse or any of their dependents including but not limited to activities in any club or association or any ostentatious display of wealth including frequent travel abroad of a non-official character by any public official when such activities entail expenses evidently out of proportion to legitimate income, shall likewise be taken into consideration in the enforcement of this section, notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary.

16. Section 9. Penalties for violations (a) Any public officer or private person committing any of the unlawful acts or omissions enumerated in Sections 3, 4, 5 and 6 of this Act shall be punished with imprisonment for not less than six years and one month nor more than fifteen years, perpetual disqualification from public office, and confiscation or forfeiture in favor of the Government of any prohibited interest and unexplained wealth manifestly out of proportion to his salary and other lawful income. Any complaining party at whose complaint the criminal prosecution was initiated shall, in case of conviction of the accused, be entitled to recover in the criminal action with priority over the forfeiture in favor of the Government, the amount of money or the thing he may have given to the accused, or the fair value of such thing.

17. Section 9. Penalties for violations (b) Any public officer violating any of the provisions of Section 7 of this Act shall be punished by a fine of not less than one thousand pesos nor more than five thousand pesos, or by imprisonment not exceeding one year and six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment, at the discretion of the Court. The violation of said section proven in a proper administrative proceeding shall be sufficient cause for removal or dismissal of a public officer, even if no criminal prosecution is instituted against him.

18. Section 13. Suspension and loss of benefits. Any incumbent public officer against whom any criminalprosecution under a valid information under this Act orunder Title Seven Book II of the Revised Penal Code or forany offense involving fraud upon government or publicfunds or property whether as a simple or as complexoffense and in whatever stage of execution and mode ofparticipation, is pending in court shall be suspended fromoffice. Should he be convinced by final judgement, he shalllose all retirement or gratuity benefits under any law, but ifhe is acquitted, he shall be entitled to reinstatement and tothe salaries and benefits which he failed to receive duringsuspension, unless in the meantime administrativeproceedings have been filed against him. In the event thatsuch convicted officer, who may have been separatedfrom the service has already received such benefits heshall be liable to restitute the same to the government

19. Section 14. Exception. Unsolicited giftsor presents of small or insignificant value offeredor given as a mere ordinary token of gratitude orfriendship according to local customs orusage, shall be excepted from the provisions ofthis Act. Nothing in this Act shall be interpreted toprejudice or prohibit the practice of anyprofession, lawful trade or occupation by anyprivate person or by any public officer who underthe law may legitimately practice hisprofession, trade or occupation, dringhis incumbency, except where the practice ofsuch profession, trade or occupation involvesconspiracy with any other person or public officialto commit any of the violations penalized in thisAct.

20. Section 15. Section 16. Effectivity. Separability clause. Ifany provision of this Act This Act shall takeor the application of such effect on its approval, butprovision to any person or for the purpose ofcircumstances is declared determining unexplainedinvalid, the remainder of the wealth, all propertyAct or the application of acquired by a publicsuch provision to other officer since he assumedpersons or circumstances office shall be taken intoshall not be affected by consideration.such declaration.

21. Most Corrupted Public officials in the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Joseph Estrada

22. Specific Types of Corruption in the PhilippinesTax EvasionGhost Projects and PayrollsEvasion of Public Bidding in the Awardingof ContractsThe practice of passing contracts from onecontractor to anotherNepotism and FavoritismExtortionTong or Protection MoneyThe Lagay system or Bribery